Honduras Zone Recognizes Bitcoin as Unit of Account
08 Jan, 2024 ● Coin news
In under two years since its adoption of Bitcoin as an official legal tender, Próspera, a special economic zone located in Roatan, Honduras, has now officially recognized Bitcoin as a unit of account.
This means that Bitcoin can be used as a standard measure to assess the market value of goods and services within this zone.
The driving force behind this development was Jorge Colindres, who serves as the acting manager and tax commissioner of Próspera Zone for Employment and Economic Development (ZEDE). He initiated this move on January 5.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter) on January 7, Colindres explained that the goal was to provide greater financial freedom to individuals and businesses operating within the Próspera area.
He stated, "At @ProsperaZEDE we believe in the right to financial freedom and monetary freedom. People should be free to carry out transactions, do their accounting and report taxes in the currency of their free choice."
This development signifies that Bitcoin can now serve as a recognized monetary unit for measuring the market value of various goods and services within the Próspera zone.
However, Colindres pointed out that they could not yet implement the "Final BTC Tax Payment Procedure" due to technological constraints with their eGovernance system and some external regulatory issues.
For the time being, entities electing to use Bitcoin for tax purposes will calculate their tax obligations with reference to BTC for internal accounting, but they will report and pay these amounts to Próspera ZEDE in United States dollars or the Honduran lempira.
Once these issues are resolved, these entities will report their tax liabilities and make payments to Próspera ZEDE in Bitcoin, as noted by Colindres.
Entities interested in adopting Bitcoin as their unit of account must file a notice with Próspera's tax commission within 30 days of the relevant tax period.
Colindres also mentioned that this notice should specify an approved cryptocurrency exchange, such as Coinbase or Kraken.
Próspera ZEDE was established in May 2020 on Roatan's northern island. The region made Bitcoin legal tender in April 2022, roughly seven months after its neighboring country, El Salvador, made Bitcoin legal tender across the entire nation in September 2021.
Colindres recently described Próspera ZEDE as one of the "most competitive special regimes" in Latin America, noting that it has attracted more than $100 million in investment during its three-year existence and has created over 3,000 jobs throughout the country.
Sources:
https://pzgps.hn/recent-publications/
